Doll eyes



Dec. 30, 1930. H wlLHELM 1,786,588

DOLL EYES Filed Feb. 14, 1929 INVENTOR X345 ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 30, 1930 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE JOHN H. WILHELM, OF ROCKAWAY BEACH, LONG ISLAND, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR T0 MARKON MANUFACTURING (30., INCL, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A. CORPORATION OF NEW YORK DOLL EYES Application filed February 14, 1929. Serial No. 339,779.

This invention relates to an improvement in doll eyes, and an object thereof is to provide means whereby such eyes may be adjustab-ly connected with their supporting cross rod.

A further object is to provide means whereby the part of the eye which has engagement with the cross rod is at once capable of exerting great frictional grip upon the cross rod, and is yet possessed of suflicient flexibility to provide for strong and efiicient grip of the cross rod notwithstanding considerable variation in size of the interengaging parts.

A further object is to provide a metallic eye shell made up from a single integral piece of sheet metal shaped to provide a main hemispherical body and means by which to connect it with a cross rod providing for adjustment of the shell with respect to the cross rod longitudinally along the cross rod, rotatably about the cross rod and rotatably about a vertical axis transverse to the length of the cross rod, and to so construct the part engaging the cross rod as to provide a uniformly firm frictional grip upon the cross rod notwithstanding considerable variation in the size of both the cross rod and said part.

A further object is to provide an eye structure which may be made of relatively thin sheet metal but which will nevertheless provide for extremely strong frictional grip upon the cross rod.

Other objects and aims of the invention, more orless specific than those referred to above, will be in part obvious and in part pointed out in the course of the following description of the elements, combinations, arrangements of partsand applications of principles constituting the invention; and the scope of protection contemplated will be indicated in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings which are to be takenas a part of this specification, and in which I have shown merely a preferred form of embodiment of the invention Fig. 1 is a. rear elevational view of a portion of an eye set constructed in accordance with this invention.

Fig. 2 is a transversesectional view taken illustrated, the reference characters G and H indicate generally the two eyes of the set.

These are connected by a cylindrical cross rod 1 which may be mounted in a doll head in any approved manner as by means of a bracket member 2 by which it is 'rotatably supported in the usual manner. A weight 3 may be rigidly connected with the cross rod by means of a weight arm 4 whereby the cross rod may be made to oscillate under the gravity control of the weight.

The eye G,-whi ch is of course usually a duplicate of its mate, is made up entirelyof a single piece of sheet metal, the central portion of which constitutes the main hemispherical body or shell L, and opposite marginal extensions as 5 and 6 of which are bent inwardly into overlappingrelation with each other across the rear open side of the body L to constitute collectively a back plate by means of which the eye may be connected with the cross rod.

The back plate as thus formed is of double thickness.

Prior to the operation of bending the extensions 5 and 6 into overlapping relationship the extension 5 is pressed to provide a series of alternately oppositely extending yokes as 7 and 8, and the extension 6 is pressed to provide a series of alternately oppositely extending yokes as 9 and 10. The yokes of the two extensions are so arranged that when said extensions are bent into overlapping relation the yokes will nest together, the

.yoke 7 of the extension 5 curving backwardly and engaging the similarly curved outer surface of the yoke 9 of the extension 6 while the yokes 8 of the extension 5 curve forwardlyin engagement with the similarly curved outer surface of the yokes 10 of the extension 6. The yokes are sufficiently springy so thatcollectively they define a horizontal spring bearing as 11 through which the cylindrical cross rod 1 extends said yokes having frictional engagement with the cylindrical surface of the cross rod to frictionally hold the eye in any position upon the cross rod to which the eye may be moved either longitudinally or rotatably of the cross rod.

The double thickness construction of the several yokes of course addsgreatly to the spring strength of the yokes in their frictional grip upon the cross rod. A piece of sheet metal amply thick to serve as the main body L might be entirely too thin and hence too weak to provide in one thickness a suflicient spring grip upon the cross rod, but by doubling the thickness as just described ample spring strength may be secured in the yokes.

The yokes of the two extensions respectively have slight irregularities of lit with each other, as indicated by the open space 12%12 in Fig. 3, so that while the two thicknesses of each given yoke greatly re-inforce each other they possess an ample spring quality to provide a degree of soft resiliency in the grip of the yokes upon the cross rod such that a strong frictional grip of the cross rod is assured notwithstanding considerable variation in the diameter of the cross rod or of the parts providing the cross rod bearing.

The parts from which to construct eye sets of the type with which this invention is concerned are manufactured in large quantities. The eyes are formed complete and are connee-ted with opposite ends of the cross rod by being forcefully telcscoped over said ends and adjusted thereon into desired positions. The diameters of different cross rods vary to considerable extent, and even the circular contour of different cross rods also varies. The bearings defined by the yokes, although formed up by the same die,'also vary. But by making the yokes of double thickness thin sheet metal arranged so that one thickness overlies the other, with the inaccuracies of one tending to correct the inaccuracies of the other, as in the present case, a substantially uniform degree of frictional engagement between the yokes and the cross rods is provided even in the presence of considerable variation of the kinds referred to.

The inaccuracies of fit of the two yoke thicknesses with respect to each other as above referred to is highly desirable and may be provided for by positively shaping the yokes of the extension *diil1erently from the yokes of the extension 6. It has been found however that usually this is not necessary since the fact that the yokes are formed in the two extensions prior to the operation of bending said extensions into overlapping relation is ordinarily sufficient to produce ample inaccuracy of fit in the nested yokes.

Each of the extensions 5 and 6 is connected with the main body L by a relatively reduced neck portion 13 which is bendable. Considering the extensions 5 and 6 collectively as a back plate and assembled rigidly with the cross rod it is seen that the neck portions 13 are aligned transversely of the cross rod so that they constitute a connection between the bodyL and the cross rod by which the body is adjustable about a vertical axis transversely of the cross rod. i

V In the modification Fig. l it is suggested that if desired the double thickness construction of the spring yokes may be secured by the use of a separately formed member as let corresponding with one of the extensions as 5 of the previous structure, the other extension being replaced by a back plate as 15 which is connected preferably by both of its ends with the main body L as at 16 and 17, it being understood of course that the reduced necks as 13 above mentioned may be formed at the opposite ends of the plate 15 for permitting adjustability of the shell L about an axis transverse to the length of the cross rod in the same manner as above described.

It will be seen from the above that the entire eye structure, ready for attachment to the cross rod, excepting of course the usual iris and pupil. pictures on the outer surface of the body L, is made from a single integral piece of sheet metal by simple pressing and drawing operations which are entirely practical for quantity manufacture, and it is pertinent in this connection to note that in pressing the yokes of the respective extensions 5 and 6, or of the separate parts 14 and 15 of the modification F 4:, it is unnecessary to utilize that high degree of accuracy for providing eiiicient grip of the cross rod which would be required if only a single thickness of sheet metal. were employed. The yokes of the extension 5 considered separately from the yokes of the extension 6 for example are of such proportions that they have only what may be termed rough relationship with'the size of the cross rod. The same is true of the yokes of extension 6, and yet when the extensions are folded over into lapping relation to collectively complete the bearing for the cross rod, or when the two separate members as in Fig. i are assembled for this purpose, each exercises a correcting influence upon the other. Each is relatively soft and yielding within itself to enable telescoping movement over the cross rod, and yet collectively they provide such accu'nnnulated strength as will accomplish the desired puroses.

The relatively inner yokes 8 and 9 may be considered as fillers overlying the inner surface of the relatively outer yokes 7 and '10 thus improving the fit and grip between the cross rod and the bearin The method of procedure as above described for forming the bearing to receive the cross rod, namely of first forming the yokes in the respective extensions 5 and 6 prior to bending down said extensions, as in dicated by the dotted lines in Fig. 3, and of subsequently bending down said extensions into overlapping relation so that the yokes nest together to collectively provide the cross rod bearing, is an important feature of this invention since thereby the slight but desir-.

able inaccuracies of fit of the yokes of the respective extensions with each other are provided as a matter of course and without any particular attention or expenditure of time and labor.

In bending down the extensions of differ ent eyes the direction and amount of bend varies, as does also the precise position of the axis of bend. Different eye bodies from the same die vary so that the pivotal axes of the two extensions of each eye also vary in relation to each other. While these variations are usually imperceptible they are yet sufficient to insure the desired inaccuracies of fit of the yokes when the extensions are fully bent.

As many changes could be made in this construction without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the following claims, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description, or shown in the accompanying drawings, shall be interpreted as illustrative only and not in a limiting sense.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. A doll eye set comprising a cross rod, means by which to rotatably support the cross rod in a doll head, a gravity control for the cross rod, and a pair of eyes connected with the cross rod, the means by which one of said eyes is connected with the cross rod consisting of a back plate carried by the eye having a plurality of oppositely disposed yokes pressed up from the material thereof collectively providing a bearing within which the cross rod engages, and said yokes each being of double thickness one thickness engaging the cross rod and the second thickness being out of engagement with the cross rod and overlying and pressing against the first thickness.

2. A doll eye comprising a hemispherical body, a back plate at the rear of the body formed integral therewith, a plurality of oppositely disposed yokes pressed up from the material thereof as integral parts of the back plate collectively defining a bearing for receiving a cross rod by which the eye may be supported in a doll head, and said yokes each being of double thickness one thickness arranged to engage the cross rod and the second thickness being out of engagement wlth the cross rod and overlying and pressing against the first.

3. A doll eye comprising a hemispherical body formed of sheet metal, a pair of extensions continuing from the body integral therewith each having a plurality 'of oppositely projecting yokes pressed up from the material thereof, and said extensions being bent into overlapping relationship with said yokes nested together to collectively constitute a bearing for receiving and frictionally engaging a cross rod by which to support the eye.

4. A doll eye comprising a hemispherical body portion having a plurality of oppositely extending yokes pressed up from the material forming said body portion and collectively providing a bearing for receiving a cross rod by which to support the eye, and means integral with said body arranged as a re-inforcement lying against at least one of said yokes to strengthen said yoke.

5. A doll eye comprising a hemispherical body portion having a plurality of oppositely extending yokes pressed up from the material forming said body portion and collectively providing a bearing for receiving a cross rod by which to support the eye, and means lying against at least one of said yokes to re-inforce said yoke and positioned to constitute a filler between said yoke and the cross rod.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

JOHN H. WlLI-IELM. 

